The reason fast bullets looks easy when a Master player does it, is because they have accute visual discrimination, tons of experience in recognizing the random obstacle layout, and assessing a mental checklist of steps…all within fractions of a second of the maze starting. Mental power of a dual core pentium processor!

Graphic from Alan McNeil:

The basic maze styles are highlighted in red, in the image, below.

Wallblock

Pipe

Gateway

Half-Gateway

Stagger

Half-Stagger or Half-Pipe

Equal Sign

If you are unlucky, you will get the hardest iteration of the maze start style.

See the yellow robots below for all the potential kill zones the robots will have on you. Remember the angle shots, they are deadly!

If the randomization gods are with you, you may find a wall is added to block a potential kill zone.

The randomization may not place a robot in every kill zone, but don’t count on that blessing!

See the Wall Block examples below for how random walls added to the Maze reduces the complexity of the task of survival

As you become more skilled, you will be able to mentally recognize the same maze style when it is flipped upside down. Meaning, the same concepts apply whether the horizontal wall is place above or below you on the “Easiest Wall Block” start

Here is the series of steps I believe a Master Berzerk player takes as they survive one of the toughest gunslinger challenges in the Video game world

Identify which maze style the start is using

Identify which random walls are added, which reduces complexity in that direction

Identify which random robots are added in the kill zones

Identify the position of most dangerous robots above/below or left/right of player

Move to dodge an immediate bullet and/or shoot at the most dangerous robot

Reposition player to take the easiest shot at the next deadly robot

All the while looking for the fastest route to a safe-zone to catch your breath and regroup for heading into the midsection of the maze. (See green stars in mazes, below.)

Believe it or not, those are the 7 logical steps you will eventually learn to do in fractions of a second!

Trust your instincts- With enough focused practice, your brain will eventually internalize the maze starts and process the list of steps subconsciously on a reflexive nature

At time of writing the author is only skilled at the Wall Block starts on Fast Bullets! ummmppphhhh….

But on Slow bullets I am fairly solid at all maze starts except the “Equal Sign”